Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Receives $283.53 Average PT from Brokerages

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $282.33.

Several research analysts recently issued reports on RCL shares. Loop Capital raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Mizuho reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 price target (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $262.00 price objective for the company. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE RCL opened at $217.23 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $58.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.32, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $239.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $222.94. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a 1 year low of $125.06 and a 1 year high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total transaction of $5,005,260.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. 7.95% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 618.8% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. operates as a cruise company worldwide. The company operates cruises under the Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises brands, which comprise a range of itineraries. As of February 21, 2024, it operated 65 ships. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.